movie review

Movie Review: NO MEN BEYOND THIS POINT

festreviews 2016 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , ,

Deadlines to Submit your Screenplay, Novel, Story, or Poem to the festival:http://www.wildsound.ca

nomenbeyondthispoint.jpgNO MEN BEYOND THIS POINT (Canada 2015) **
Directed by Mark Sawers

Starring: Ali Skovbye, Rekha Sharma, Kirsten Robek

Review by Gilbert Seah

NO MEN BEYOND THIS POINT has been accurately described by The Globe and Mail paper as ‘A Handmaid’s Tale’ meets Michael Moore.

The film is done in a comedic documentary style, the way director Michael Moore does his films like WHERE TO INVADE NEXT. and BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE. The subject is fictitious, that of a female society in which men have no place in – as in Margaret Atwood’s A HANDMAID’S TALE.

The film setting is 1953 where it is documented that a pregnancy has occurred without sex. There is no intercourse involving men fertilizing the female’s egg in the ovary. Director Mark Sawers centres his film on a character by the name of Andrew Myers – supposedly the youngest man in the world. Not only have men been removed from the equation of reproduction, but all babies are now only female. He is hired as a nanny to do the ‘housewife’ chores in a family headed by two women.
To have his film made believable, Sawers spends a fair amount of screen time explaining how this fact of nature could come about. Through humorous mock interviews with doctors, experts and women, the composition of the baby in terms of XY, YY chromosomes are explained. It is also shown how the sperm is now prevented from entering the ovary through mock footage. All this is fine except that too much time in the film is spent on it, with the film being monotonous stressing a fact that has already being made made. But no explanation why only females are born except to point out that nature has taken a change in its course as men are obsolete.

Sawers spends time with Andrew’s family showing how a community will change without men. Females pair off. They might fall in love with each other or just live together for companionship because it is more convenient.

Also in the film are added a group of men that are unhappy with this fact. The reason is that men have ben forced (as they are now a minority) into all male sanctuaries where they just watch TV, play chess and can cause no harm. This forms the film’s funniest and most keenly observant segments.

But after spending all this time on the possible existence of a manless society, Sawers takes the opposite route. Andrew falls in love with one of the woman he works for. The couple become an ostracized couple, hunted down. The film looks much like the story of ZERO POPULATION GROWTH in which a couple have an extra child escape from authorities. It is at this point that Sawers’ film starts taking too much that it can chew. It abandons the documentary format and turns into a fiction film.

As it is a small budget film with no name actors, the amateurism of the performances also comes through loud and clear. The actor playing Andrew, for example looks totally out of place just as his character is out of place in the new world of women.

NO MEN BEYOND THIS POINT is a film with an interesting enough concept that does not play out as well as expected. Too many issues and too much time is spent on authenticating the possibility of the premise.

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Movie Review: A HOLOGRAM FOR THE KING

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Deadlines to Submit your Screenplay, Novel, Story, or Poem to the festival:http://www.wildsound.ca

ahologramfortheking.jpgA HOLOGRAM FOR THE KING (UK/France/Germany USA 2015) ***1/2
Directed by Tom Tykwer

Starring: Tom Hanks, Alexander Black, Sarita Choudhury, Tom Skerritt

Review by Gilbert Seah

Ever since RUN LOLA RUN and WINTER SLEEPERS German director Tom Tykwer has impressed audiences with the desperation of his characters. In his latest collaboration with Tom Hanks after the box-office disastrous CLOUD ATLAS, the desperate protagonist, Alan Clay (Hanks) is sent outside his comfort zone to a new place where he surprisingly finds purpose back into his life in the form of an unexpected romance.

If the plot sounds familiar, the recent animated ANOMALISA featured a distraught business executive (voiced by David Thewlis) in a hotel while attending a business conference and finding love and meaning in his life. Charlie Kaufman’s ANOMALISA has the novelty of the entire film voiced by only three actors as to the executive only two people matter, himself and his new romance and the rest of the world is therefore all one voice. Whilst ANOMALISA is restricted in its claustrophobic environment of the hotel, the same premise in HOLOGRAM FOR THE KING is taken wide out into the open, literally, to the huge desert expanse of Saudi Arabia.

Clay, an IT guy, is sent to close a deal with the King of Saudi Arabia for a huge computer system sale, which he hopes to close by means of an awesome presentation utilizing a hologram (which Brit actor Ben Winshaw appears in), thus the title of the film.

Tykwer’s film, based on the novel by Roger Eggers has lots more to play with than Anomalisa. Though both films contain the baggage of a failed marriage, HOLOGRAM includes a loving daughter who needs her college tuition paid.

An additional feature that adds to the interest of HOLOGRAM is the Kafka-ish feel to the film. The Kafka-ish elements include Clay trying to solve impossible problems. For one, he is supposed to have a presentation with the King who is never there. Every time he is told the King is going to be present, the date is changed. Clay also bears a huge boil on his back which he tries to cut open. And just as in Kafka-ish mode, he is told by his doctor, that he is unfortunately in good health when the boil is non-cancerous. Unfortunately, the audience is told because if it is not benign, Clay cannot blame the boil for all his fatigue, failure and lack of energy.

Tom Hanks plays Clay against type. He is no Captain Philips or class manipulator as in BRIDGE OF SPIES. Hanks for the first time plays an inefficient human being who strives and finally makes good. That is what makes the film works, it is a sad feel-good movie. And Hanks, as usual is pretty good. The rest of the cast are played by international actors. His love interest, the doctor Zahra is played by Indian actress (a regular in Deepa Metha films) Sarita Choudhury. This is not surprising as she bares her breasts in nude scenes, a big no-no if they got an actress from Saudi Arabia. As stated, Winshaw is British and Clay also has a fling with a Danish worker/associate, played by Danish actress Hana Sidse Babett Knudsen (DUKE OF BURGUNDY).

A HOLOGRAM FOR THE KING works because of its quirkiness. Tykwer takes his audience for a good roller-coaster ride, like the one at the start of the film with Clay in it singing the Talking Heads song “Once in a Lifetime”. The film shows that the American Dream is not something taken for granted, but one that though achievable needs to be earned as Clay discovers.

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Movie Review: PRECIOUS CARGO

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preciouscargo.jpgPRECIOUS CARGO (USA 2016) **
Directed by Max Adams

Starring: Bruce Willis, Claire Forlani, Mark-Paul Gosselaar

Review by Gilbert Seah

There are a few reasons to go see this action flick, one of them being to learn how an action film can end up so odd. Another is the many references to James Bond, whether intentional or unintentional.

The film begins, actually quite well. In the starting segment, the hero Jack (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) is shot twice by blanks. The first time he falls to the ground, the pounding music quietens to silence. When Jack rises to his feet again to face his shooter, the music quickly resumes to the initial pounding before he is shot again, falling to the ground with the music quietening again. This little quirk is the film’s best part – and nothing else can match it.

The James Bond references are also pretty funny and weird which breaks the otherwise monotony of the film. Every Bond film begins with an unassociated plot action piece which is the most spectacular stunts sequence in the Bond film. The same goes in PRECIOUS CARGO. The opening credits with the diamonds and dancing figures also remind one of a Bond film. The hero is also surrounded by rival ladies and there are three in this film. But funniest is the villain’s right hand man (Daniel Bernhardt), one that never dies that has an uncanny resemblance to a solid and fitter Sean Connery in his youthful days. The actor is much sexier than Gosselaar which might be the reason he is never killed off. He also has the best dialogue in the film – especially the monologue telling off his boss’s bitches.

It is all these interesting little quirks that appear out of the blue that lifts the film out of boredom. But these are insufficient to lift the film above the average action flick. The plot (the lines and many incidents are predictable), the boat chase (there is conveniently a spare boat and two jet skis for the villains to chase Jack and crew who escape on one) and James Bond copied action fights are examples of cliched material. The film cannot be taken seriously nor is it funny enough to be classified as a spoof.

Jack and crew are professional crooks. Jack’s ex-girlfriend, Karen (Claire Forlani) runs foul of her crime boss lover Eddie (Bruce Willis) and wants to pull a $30 million dollar diamond heist. This will allow her to pay off Eddie and also allow Jack to retire.

Funny that the heist is so simply executed with no glitches but Jack running foul of Eddie and his gang becomes more of the problem.

Like Bond, Jack is a ladies’ man. Having three ladies after his chops would be something that would annoy the female audience in this day and age. The first is Karen. The other is Jack’s new vet girlfriend (Lydia Hull) and the third is a markswoman member of his crew, Logan (Jenna B. Kelly).

PRECIOUS CARGO originated as the prize winning student short film that Max Adams made. This is the expanded full length feature version.

The film ends with the end credits rolling over behind the scenes bloopers, which like most are inside jokes for the actors and crew and are less funny to the audience. But funniest is the caption of the film being dedicated to Grace. Grace is the dog Jack takes to the vet in a segment of the movie.

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Movie Review: THE MEDDLER. Starring: Susan Sarandon, Rose Byrne

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themeddler.jpgTHE MEDDLER (USA 2015) ***
Directed by Lorene Scafaria

Starring: Susan Sarandon, Rose Byrne, J.K. Simmons, Cecily Strong, Michael McKean, Jerrod Carmichael

Review by Gilbert Seah

Just a week after the comedy HELLO, MY NAME IS DORIS arrives another film with a senior protagonist. Though the two films are highly different, the target audience might be the same. THE MEDDLER will have tough shoes to fill, as the former film serves up more comedy, commercial style with 2-time Oscar winner Sally Field while THE MEDDLER is a combination of down-to-earth drama and autobiography. The story is fashioned from the writer/director Lorene Scarfaria’s relationship with her own mother.

THE MEDDLER of the film title is Marnie (Susan Sarandon), who after her husband’s death has nothing better to do but to meddle. But her meddling is not bad in any sense as her intentions are genuine. Her ‘meddling’ involves suffocating her daughter Lori (Rose Byrne), not giving her any space, helping a fast-food worker with his law degree and offering as much as underwriting $13,000 for Lori’s friend’s wedding among others.

When Lori finally has had enough of her mother and moves away to sort out her career, Marnie is forced to face the worse – not having her daughter around and to rethink her options. So she falls in love.

The trouble with THE MEDDLER that real life stories like the one based on the director’s mother do not turn out to be that interesting on film.

Another problem is that Marnie has no real obstacles to her life. Her life is actually a total breeze. She is financially more than able, thanks to late husband, and she has a loving daughter and two very eager lovers. These factors lowers the film’s interest even more. Director Scarfaria makes matters worse by having one eager lover, the one played by J.K. Simmons sing to his chickens, thus amplifying the desperation of the film’s story.

But the film contains a few neat surprises. Examples are Marnie’s upcoming romances. The way she ditches her lovers or possible lovers is nothing short of plain hilarious.

Sarandon has a track record of superlative performances in films such as THELMA AND LOUISE, LORENZO’S OIL and my personal favourite, THE WITCHES OF EASTWICK. And she is still a knockout at the age of almost 70. She makes the movie.

But the character of Marnie might not necessarily be a senior or mother. A best friend or younger person could have the same charter mould as Marnie. The script could have picked a different aged or even male protagonist to appeal to a wider audience and put some problems in her life to make the film more varied.

The result is a film more close to life (despite Marnie’s too convenient wealth) that it comes too close to home and monotonous. THE MEDDLER contains less humour and more drama, most of it brought on herself by the character. As such the target audience might prefer to watch a more fairy tale of a film like HELLO, MY NAME IS DORIS. Only box-office receipts will reveal the fate of both movies.

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Happy Birthday: Melonie Diaz

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meloniediaz.jpgHappy Birthday actor Melonie Diaz

Born: April 25, 1984 in New York City, New York, USA

Reviews of the best of the actor:

MOVIE POSTERFRUITVALE STATION
2013
dir. Ryan Coogler
Stars:
Michael B. Jordan
Melonie Diaz

 A GUIDE TO RECOGNIZING YOUR SAINTSA Guide to Recognizing your Saints
2006
dir. Dino Montiel
starring
Dianne Wiest
Downey Jr.

Re Kind Rewind
2008
Directed by Michel Gondry
Starring
Black
Mos Def

Nothing Like the HolidaysNothing Like the Holidays
dir. Alfredo De Villa
Starring
Alfred Molina
Elizabeth Pena

Hamlet 2Hamlet 2
2008
dir. Andrew Fleming
Starring
Steve Coogan
Keener

Movie Review: GREEN ROOM. Starring: Anton Yelchin, Imogen Poots, Alia Shawkat

festreviews 2016 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , , ,

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green_room.jpgGREEN ROOM (USA 2015) ***
Directed by Jeremy Saulnier

Starring: Anton Yelchin, Imogen Poots, Alia Shawkat

Review by Gilbert Seah

Character development is not really important in a slasher horror film. But it helps that the audience can identify with the characters and know something about them so that they are not just numbered victims. An example is the upcoming BODY in which the director spends a considerable amount of time giving each of the three girl victims a distinct personality.

The premise of the film is a simple one. A punk band called ‘The Ain’t Rights’ is dead broke. Their car is stranded and they are so out of cash that they have to siphon gas from other cars to get to their gigs. One of their desperate gigs is a Neo-Nazi skinhead bar headed by a no-nonsense meanie played by Patrick Stewart. After witnessing a stabbing, the band members and the victim’s friend (Imogen Poots) are locked in a GREEN ROOM. The Neo-Nazis want them (the only witnesses) done away with. It is Neo-Nazis vs. punks.

In GREEN ROOM, spending time on characterizations seems useless for two reasons. Firstly, there is no need to know anything about a victim who is no longer there in the film and characterization serves to give a hint as to who will survive. The nasty personalities are usually killed of first, as stated in the spoof SCARE films, a fact only too true. But director Saulnier (BLUE RUIN) cleverly introduces each of the band members at the start of the film through an interview in which each member has their say. Much can also be read from each’s favourite band, a running joke in the film.

The characters are all nasty in their own way. Saulnier makes none of them any less sympathetic. It finally comes down to the question of who is the least nasty.

Atmosphere and mood wise, GREEN ROOM has an extremely scary look – credit to the tech department involved. Whether out in the open or in the green room, the film always has a claustrophobic feel that the victims can never escape.
Performance-wise, the one that stands out is Patrick Stewart as D’Arcy. Stewart appears to have moulded his role out of Rob Zombie (THE DEVIL’S REJECTS, HALLOWEEN). Of the cast, all do well in the screamingly best.

Saulnier also teases the audience in number of ways. In one scene he shows a victim with no blood and just a sharp object on the side of her head. No blood. Want blood? The next scene has the object pulled out with lots of blood gushing out flooding the carpet.

Saulnier does have a soft spot for innocent victims. The killer dog in one scene is allowed to survive and is shown sadly putting its head down and mourning its dead owner.

GREEN ROOM finally emerges as an efficient chiller, not suitable for the weak-hearted or even for the strong hearted in the early hours of the day. An entertaining nasty piece of work if one has the stomach for it.

 

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Movie Review: HELLO, MY NAME IS DORIS. Starring Sally Field

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hello_my_name_is_dorisHELLO, MY NAME IS DORIS (USA 2015) ***
Directed by Michael Snowalter

Starring: Sally Field, Max Greenfield, Tyne Daly, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Stephen Root, Elizabeth Reaser

Review by Gilbert Seah

The new showcase for two-time Oscar Winner Sally Field (NORMA RAE and PLACES IN THE HEART) places her in the ‘You really like me, you really, really like me” role of an sixty-plus data entry cubicle office worker, called Doris Miller. Begging to be loved, she falls for a much younger office worker, the new art director John Fremont (Max Greenfield). The question of whether she will get the young man to notice and fall in love with her is kept current from the start to the end of the film – a point that writer/director Michael Snowalter keeps as a delicate balancing act, and one that makes the film work.

Films about women falling for much younger men seldom work and end up disastrous. Examples are Genevieve Gilles playing a Baroness falling for younger Michael Crawford in HELLO-GOODBYE and Jean Simmons falling for the younger LEONARD WHITING in SAY HELLO TO YESTERDAY. Even when it is the other way round, with an older male and younger girl as in the Clint Eastwood directed BREEZY with William Holden and Kay Lenz, the idea fails. So, HELLO, MY NAME IS DORIS is already quite an achievement.

The film’s premise is simple enough. The film begins with Doris’s mother’s funeral. Her brother and wife wishes her to sell the house she and her mother she had cared had lived in. She declines, being a hoarder. At work, she accidentally bumps into young and gorgeous Max Fremont who ends up being the new guy in the office. She pines for him. She gets the help of her best friend’s 13-year old daughter to make friends on his Facebook account. Doris and Max hang out and Doris falls for him. Of course, the audiences is never sure of Max’s feelings for her and this is what keeps the film interesting – the audience is guessing. And right up to the very last reel.

Snowalter’s film works as both a comedy and drama. Fortunately, he keeps sentimentality at bay. Sally Field is nothing short of marvellous in the role of Doris, proving her mettle at getting both laughs and sympathy. Having won two Oscars for dramatic roles, she expectedly shines in the dramatic parts making a good balance, as in the segment she finally makes her stand against her bullying brother (Stephen Root) and wife (Wendi McLendon-Covey).

But Snowalter film plays more for comedy. The script that he co-wrote has sufficient comedic set-ups – the electronic concert party; the best friend’s Thanksgiving dinner without Doris; the inspirational seminar with guru Peter Gallagher to mention a few.

But it is Field that makes the film work, aided by really apt supporting performances from a superb supporting cast especially from Tyne Daly as her best friend, Roz. Greenfield who plays the young hunk has good chemistry with Field, supplementing Doris as the could be, could-not-be interested beau.

But mostly it is the film’s charm, credibility and humour that makes this film a cut above other films in this genre. Yes, we really, really like Doris!

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Movie Review: The Huntsman: Winter’s War (2016)

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the_huntsman_winters_war.jpgTHE HUNTSMAN – WINTER’S WAR (USA 2016) **
Directed by Cedric Nicolas-Troyan

Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Jessica Chastain, Charlize Theron, Emily Blunt

Review by Gilbert Seah

The prequel to SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN is a film that is written for no reason but as an excuse to milk the box-office for more money in the fairy tale blockbuster special effects genre. The plot involves the sister, Freya (Emily Blunt) of the Evil Queen, Ravenna (Charleze Theron) that was the enemy of Snow White, becoming queen and training kidnapped children to be her army so that she can conquer more lands. Her Kingdom has only one rule – no love is allowed.
Love inevitably blossoms between two children that grow up to become Chris Hemsworth and Jessica Chastain. Eric and Sara marry in their own way. The Ice Queen Freya separates them. Eric embarks on a quest to find the magic mirror (that mirror, mirror on the wall who can tell the fairest of them all mirror) in order to save Snow White’s Kingdom. The clumsy story goes on with the quest looking similar to Frodo’s in LORD OF THE RINGS, complete with 4 dwarfs as well.

The dwarfs do enliven the sorry plot. But nothing really keeps one really engaged despite the glossy production, Snow white is noticeably missing in this prequel to Snow White. Her name is only mentioned and that she had been usurped the throne from the Evil Queen. But Snow White was nevertheless unmemorable in the first film and I would bet many would even have forgotten who played that role (Kristen Stewart), so leaving her character out might have been a good decision.

The prequel instead adds Jessica Chastain and Emily Blunt, two hot actresses of today. The former plays the huntsman’s love interest while the other, the evil queen sister, the ice queen (similar to FROZEN), which the audience can foresee will end up with a battle of the siblings. This does happen at the film’s climax.

Theron continues the bitchiness with royal effect while Blunt has to settle with a milder villainous performance. Hemswoth does what he is paid to do – look his best and that he undoubtedly does well. Sloppiness shows in the filmmaking when the actors speak with different accents – English, Irish and American.

Cedric Nicolas-Troyan who was on the special effects team in the first film takes over the director’s reigns in this one. Colleen Atwood who was nominated for an Oscar for Best Achievement in Costume Design returns to do the elaborate costumes. No doubt the gowns of the two queens are nothing short of stunning with gold, icy white and feathers while the huntsman dons metal and silver. Whenever on queen appears, it seems like a fashion show is about to commence. But these costumes are not sufficient to make the film.

The climatic fight scene is a battle in which all the heroes and villains (male and female) come together in a special visual effects extravaganza that is more a show of lights and magic than action and suspense. It is inevitable who wins here, so no surprises here at all.

The film ends with the narrator saying that while fairy tales come true, none truly ends, promising an unwelcome sequel to this mess. If that is not enough, director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan is already in the process of a reboot for HIGHLANDER.

 

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BODY, Movie Review. Drama/Thriller

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body.jpgBODY (USA 2014) ***
Directed by Dan Berk and Robert Olsen

Starring: Helen Rogers, Alexandra Turshen, Lauren Molina

Review by Gilbert Seah

A low budget horror/thriller that starts off pretty well.

As the opening credits roll, the film screen is all black and a voice, barely decipherable, is calling 911 for help.

When the film opens, three girls, Mel (Lauren Molina), Holly (Helen Rogers) and Cali (Alexandra Turshen) party it up at Mel’s house. They start off with Scrabble arguing about certain words used before Mel’s dad interrupts bringing in food. The three exit the house to smoke weed with Mel’s younger brother Josh only to be caught by Mel’s mother. These kind of goings-on are nothing special but can happen all the time when everyone was a teen or later on when becoming one. Thus, everyone can relate to the incidents and this is the reason the film is so engaging at first. Directors Beck and Olsen do more than the normal slasher movie in investing their time on the three characters and the character development. They party hard, and it is entertaining to see them just do nothing but film themselves on their cell phones, for example dancing around.

But things take a turn when the trio decide to party into the night and visit Cali’s uncle’s mansion. But Cali is lying and it turns out that she used to babysit for the Asian family that lives in the house. Things turn sour when the groundskeeper suddenly shows up and is accidentally pushed down the stairs. The film turns into a slasher thriller.

Though not an exceptional film, BODY does possess certain unique traits not found in other films of this genre. First and most noticeable is the amount of effort put into the development of the character of each girl. Cali is the nasty one, Holly the decent rational one while Mel is the in-betweener. The character of Holly also undergoes a transformation that makes her character more complex. Hers is obviously the most interesting of the three. The character development is not there for show but also integral to the film’s plot. The next thing is that BODY is more of a thriller than a horror movie. There is no slasher that never dies or one that keeps appearing after being killed. Thirdly, there is a good transition from humour to thriller. The first half of the film is mostly the girls partying, which brings the film its lighter moments and a few laugh-out loud parts. There are a few psychological moments such as the ones with a girl screaming into the face of another that evokes horror.

The cast of unknowns deliver their performances naturally. They look like genuine teenagers out for a good time with just things getting bad.

But judging from Cali’s bad behaviour and personality one does wonder the reason the other two hang around or keep her as a friend. However, these are little points that usually go unnoticed in a teen thriller.

The film also briefly deals with conscience and consequences but it is not a message
film. BODY ends up a satisfactory time-waster and a good film to watch with a bunch of friends on a night out or at home. The film also opens on VOD Apr 26.

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